Same Query in Two Languages Doesn't Necessarily Translate

ENLARGE

Radal Nadal answers questions from the media after his third-round match on Saturday at the U.S. Open.
Derick Gonzalez/The Wall Street Journal

Updated Sept. 3, 2013 12:21 p.m. ET

Tennis players often have to trade volleys with the media in multiple languages during their postmatch news conferences. (
Roger Federer
answers questions in English, French and Swiss-German, for example.) The proliferation of polyglots raises a relevant question: Do the pros give different answers depending on the language they're speaking? Open Racket posed the same question in both English and Spanish to Spaniards Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer following their third-round wins this past weekend.

No. 2 Nadal, who beat Philipp Kohlschreiber in the fourth round on Monday, responded in similar fashion in both languages, adding slightly more detail in his native tongue. But No. 4 Ferrer, who beat Janko Tipsarevic earlier Monday, changed his affect and level of confidence in his answers. In Spanish, Ferrer was assertive and amiable; in English, he lowered his voice and conveyed more vulnerability in his answers.

To be sure, evaluating responses in players' non-native languages can be subjective, especially considering that not all players have the same grasp of a given language. When asked in English how he felt about the (very distinct) tan line left on his forehead from his trademark headband, Ferrer didn't fully understand the question until bilingual reporters translated the phrase "tan line" into Spanish. (Ferrer's response, in English: "I don't care.")

Below, our question and the responses in English and Spanish from Nadal and Ferrer, respectively:

WSJ: How do you feel about your game as we head into the second week of the tournament?

FERRER (English): Very good. I'm in the second week. The match was very tough. Very physic[al]…But I fight, I was thinking to be focused and thinking I can win.

FERRER (translated from Spanish): I'm happy to be in the second week, compared to how I was playing at the beginning of the month to how I'm playing now, I feel that I'm playing much better and I'm feeling more confident.

NADAL (English): Good. I think I played a correct match today. Happy [result] against a player who came to this tournament winning against tough opponents like [Nikolay] Davydenko and [Fernando] Verdasco. To be able to win against him in straight sets is great news. I played better today than in the previous matches. Always a positive thing. Tomorrow I have another day for practice and to be better for the match of Monday.

NADAL (translated from Spanish): To be playing at your best level is always good news. However, every day is a different story. Sometimes you step forward, other times it's a step back. I'm focusing on taking small steps forward in this tournament and I feel like I have taken steps forward not backward. It's important because the rivals are getting more and more difficult. I want to be ready for the opponents to follow in the next couple of rounds.

—Sara Germano and Kris Areche

Federer's Move to Armstrong Upsets Fans Unable to Get In

The line of fury stretched 300 yards, from the gates of Louis Armstrong Stadium to the water fountain in front of Arthur Ashe Stadium. In it were a thousand tennis fans, many telling the nearest blue-clad U.S. Open staff member exactly how mad they were.

They had purchased the golden ticket, an assigned seat for Ashe's day session to watch three former No. 1 players—
Roger Federer
,
Victoria Azarenka and Ana Ivanovic—in the afternoon matches. Then it rained for about four hours Monday, so tournament officials postponed the Azarenka-Ivanovic match until Tuesday. They kept the Federer match on Monday, but moved it to Armstrong.

That meant not everyone in line got in to see Federer. "It's just horrendous management," said 28-year-old Pako Padilla of Astoria, standing in line and watching the match on a screen outside Armstrong with his wife. "Explain to me how I can spend $300, watching it on a TV, when I can watch it at home."

The only tennis Padilla saw in person Monday was 20 minutes of the only match completed at Ashe during the day, between unseeded players Alison Riske and Daniela Hantuchova.

Lisa Lloyd stayed in the line, despite the warnings that Armstrong was filled. "I'm here for one day," she said. She, her husband and two daughters had traveled from North Carolina and spent $1,000 on tournament tickets for one of their children's 13th birthday. "It's crazy that they can just do that," Lloyd said.

Under the tournament's normal inclement-weather policy, the U.S. Open would not offer ticket exchanges or credit because the Hantuchova-Riske one was completed. But U.S.T.A. spokesman Chris Widmaier said Monday evening that "as a courtesy to our fans who came today," U.S. Open officials will allow fans to exchange their tickets for Monday's session for one in the 2014 tournament.

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